Over the last few months and the next to come, I have been doing a lot of traveling. Not just a day here or weekend there but rather spending weeks at a time at places. This is in part to having more than one objective every time I travel. Which to me is key when it comes to setting up for a successful trip, now if you are just on a vacation enjoy the shit out of it and don’t be a complete jackass, but if it is a business/networking trip try to see what is around and visit as much as possible. For instance, when I went to Tampa, I spent time with 2 IFBB Pro’s, 4 PhD’s and made some awesome connections. Did something similar when I was in Ohio, mostly because I am looking at Universities to pursue my PhD but I also timed it with seminar’s and reached out to as many people as possible to meet, talk, and train. To me, that is a successful trip from a business perspective.
The biggest question I get when I do the traveling is how do I stay on track with everything and this is the big thing I want to cover some tips and tricks to stay on track and to survive a long trip.
- As soon as you land go exercise. This is a great way to get your blood flowing, getting the body moving and blood flowing can start to help your body acclimate to the new time zone. It can also help you sleep better and get your body back on schedule. It doesn’t have to be a crazy workout but just something that allows your hips to open up, your t-spine to get moving and to flush the water out that your body tends to hold onto while traveling.
- Find a store that’s close to where you are staying. Whenever I travel I immediately find the closest store so I know that I will be able to get the food that I normally eat on a day to day basis. Trying to keep the same food selection is a great idea for the most part. It will allow your body to digest the food easy and it won’t bloat you and mess up your ability to sleep. The worst thing you can do is land and go out to eat a huge meal, that can affect your ability to have a good night’s sleep which will make the following days very rough on your body and its ability to adjust.
- Have a game plan but be flexible. It is a good idea to plan things out like where you want to train, what you want to eat, how flexible you want to be with both of those things, etc.. It is also good to try and get into your normal routine as fast as possible but don’t fall victim to thinking everything will be perfect and things will go off without a hitch. That thought process will lead to stress and failure. You may be attending a seminar and everyone wants to go out to eat, you need to be flexible enough to do so. Please don’t be that person who migrates back to their hotel every night and is anti-social, you would be missing a prime opportunity to meet other liked minded people.
- Get an Airbnb. This has been a life saver for me, it allows me to feel like I am home and can get on track asap. It has a kitchen, washer/dryer, and everything else you will need. Just make sure you find a good one that has a good host.
- Have fun!! This is the most important thing when it comes to traveling and this can mean so many different things. Some people like to just relax and others like to explore. If sticking to your plan 100% is fun for you than do that, there is no right or wrong answer to this, it is just up to you to enjoy the experience the best way you know how. Don’t find yourself doing stuff just because or if you do something and don’t enjoy it don’t feel obligated to stay with it. It is your vacation enjoy it.
